According to The Hollywood Reporter, Marvel Studios’ upcoming film Blade has lost director Bassam Tariq due to “continued shifts in our [Marvel Studios] production schedule.” Tariq will remain involved with the film as an executive producer. Blade is currently set to begin filming in Atlanta this November, and it is unclear if production will be delayed while the search for a new director is underway.
Oscar winner Mahershala Ali is in the titular role, with Delroy Lindo and Aaron Pierre joining in the cast. Beau DeMayo, who has worked on series such as Netflix’s The Witcher, Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, and Marvel Studios’ Moon Knight, is writing the project.
It is yet to be seen where Ali’s Blade will physically appear in the MCU. He hasn’t appeared in the MCU quite yet, but he did have an extremely brief voice cameo in the post-credits scene of Eternals. When Dane Whitman was preparing to reach for the Ebony Blade, a powerful yet cursed weapon, Blade chimed in off-screen:
“You sure you’re ready for that, Mr. Whitman?”
Blade will allow Marvel Studios to dive deeper into the horror aspects of the franchise, which was explored to an extent throughout Moon Knight with darker themes. Horror will also be heavily featured with the next Marvel Studios release to Disney+, Werewolf By Night, which is available to stream October 7.
Blade will release in theaters November 3, 2023. Stay tuned with Nerds & Beyond for updates.
